John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

Last year, we had a record number of foreign visitors. Visitor attitude surveys continue to record a high level of satisfaction with the overall visitor experience, although there have been significant declines in satisfaction regarding value for money. The Government, the tourism agencies and the industry, by and large, have been addressing this competitiveness challenge. Actions that undermine our efforts in this regard are not welcome.

On the question raised by the Deputy, we live in a free market and traders are, subject to a few exceptions, entitled to charge what they want. The price of drink, for example, is a commercial issue outside my remit. No legislation prevents publicans from increasing their prices prior to or during an event. One statutory instrument that protects consumers, however, is the Retail Price (Beverages in Licensed Premises) Display Order 1999, which obliges all premises, where alcohol is sold, to display the price of alcohol and soft drinks both inside and outside the premises. This gives consumers the information they need to decide whether to accept the prices displayed.

I do not believe in adding to existing regulation. The consumer is the ultimate regulator and consumer power can be influential. The problem is that Ireland tends to have a weak consumer culture. We tend to be reluctant to complain about price, service or quality even when we have legitimate grounds for so doing.

The Director of Consumer Affairs has been proactive on the drinks pricing issue lately. Her office carried out a number of price surveys of pub prices in the past few months with a view to facilitating consumer choice when attending sporting and other events. The results of these surveys are available on the director's website, www.odca.ie. It is encouraging that surveys of prices by the director have shown that the problem of sharp increases in drink prices at the time of these events is not as marked as in previous years. The overall impression from the surveys carried out by the director's office over the past 12 months suggests that the extent of the practice of increasing drink prices around special events may have been exaggerated and it is important for the House to note that.

No legislation governs rates charged by accommodation providers. There is, however, one limit on hoteliers. All hotels must be registered in the register of hotels maintained by Fáilte Ireland. Under the registration system, hoteliers are required to have a notice stating the maximum prices they charge for accommodation and they are not supposed to exceed those prices. If consumers are asked for more than the stated maximum, they should take this up with management. If they find they have paid more and can prove that, they should report the matter to Fáilte Ireland or its agents who can take the matter up with the hotel concerned.

Excessive profiteering around special events may be legal. It may be capable of being rationalised from a narrow, short-term economic perspective. However, this practice by a tiny segment of the trade is not helpful to the reputation of a tourism destination. We only have to think of our own reaction if confronted by these practices at foreign destinations. A few operators might ask themselves whether the short-term profit is worth killing the goose that lays the golden egg. At the same time, however, it is unfair to tar the entire sector with the same brush.

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I have not discussed this issue with my colleague the Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment but I have noted that the recent price surveys of the Director of Consumer Affairs, allied to increased consumer vigilance, can have a positive effect. The director said recently, following the latest rugby international in Lansdowne Road:

I am glad to note that only two out of the 26 premises surveyed raised their prices on Saturday for the rugby match. I would regard this a positive response to public awareness.

This is welcome news and confirms my view that the best and ultimate regulator is the consumer.

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